A day for Japan's largest freshwater fish

Today, and January 10th annually, is Ito day イトウの日. Sakhalin taimen as it is called in English, or ito in Japanese, is a rare species of salmon and the largest freshwater fish in Japan. 

The Ito is Japan’s largest freshwater fish, capable of growing over 1.5 meters long. Today, it survives only in limited areas of Hokkaido and is classified as an endangered species. It takes 15 years for an Ito to reach 1 meter in length, which makes its conservation especially important.

The North Land Aquarium in Hokkaido created this anniversary to raise awareness of the ito and encourage conservation efforts. The chose this date as a pun on January 10th which is written in short as 1/10 in Japan;  1 (イ) and 10 (トウ) sound like Ito in Japanese.